Duel or Die
by Gema J. Gall
Summary: Read or Die&YuGiOh!. The paper masters and duelists are lead deep into a conspiracy concerning the Library of England and Paradias that threatens the world twice over.
1. The Hijack Part 1

**R.O.D. Read or Die/Yu-Gi-Oh! Crossover**

**Duel or Die**

By: Gema J. Gall

Disclaimer: I do not own anything from either series, though I wish more than anything I did, since they are my all two favorite series of all time, ever. huggles ROD and YGO boxed sets Saphira Twyla is mine, as well as this plot and truckloads of idea demons that cause me to start new fics when I have a thesis to type. And to those of you who might think otherwise, Seto Kaiba is _mine_ and **_mine _**alone!

Gema's Personal Disclaimer: I'm putting this in front of every chapter I write, so no one can miss it.

First, the obvious, I don't own anything trademarked or copyrighted.

Second; These are my fics, so y'all will have to deal with my writing quirks. Do not bother telling me about my spelling choices, like Yu-Gi, Joe, Millennial, or whatever else they may be. These are not mistakes, they are intentional. Therefore, I don't want to hear about how they are other wise spelled. If spelling bothers you that much, then leave.

I, and everyone else, do not appreciate personal attacks. My fics are what are open to being critized, not my character. Attacking me is libel, and I will report it as harassment.

I will not include profanity in my writings. Deal with it. Also, I do not appreciate profanity in reviews, so please don't include it. There's over 600,000 words in the English language. I am sure y'all can use something besides profanity.

Some review etiquette should be observed. As says at the bottom of each review page "It is extremely helpful to use this opportunity to comment on an aspect of the story that can be improved. A well rounded critique is often the most rewarding tool for the writer." I would appreciate constructive reviews. "Please continue" is not very helpful. Reviews that are solely demands for updates or explanations about a lack of updates are not helpful. And please, use recognizable grammar when reviewing. A review isn't very helpful if I can't read it.

Please check my bio from time to time. If I am on vacation or something and cannot update, that will be in the first few lines of my bio. I'll try to let y'all know if there's an update delay, so please check.

Feel free to contact me either through IM or e-mail, that information is in my bio as well.

Now, most of you aren't the problem, but this is for the few that are. This might come across as crabby, and I'm not really like this, but I've been pushed to my limit because of certain reviews.

x-x-x-x-x-x-x

AN/ Spoiler Warning! This takes place after the ROD TV series and will contain major spoilers to those who haven't seen it. This takes place during the Orichalcos saga of Yu-Gi-Oh! and will contain spoilers from that saga and everything prior, as well as potentially spoiling the sagas afterward.

A young girl, about age sixteen stepped onto the bus with four other passengers. She carefully walked down the aisle, keeping her bulging navy backpack in front of her so she wouldn't accidentally hit someone in the head as she passed. She looked down both rows of seats, looking for an open one.

The bus was more crowded than usual for an afternoon day. It wasn't too hard to figure out why. Most seats down the right hand row were occupied by squirming elementary students, who were talking and snickering amongst themselves, looking out the windows, and shouting loudly to friends several rows behind them. An exasperated looking teacher sat toward the front and occasional shouted back for her charges to calm down and quiet down.

The girl sat down on the left hand side, selecting by sheer chance the seat above the wheel. After much forcing and wiggling, she managed to push her backpack on the floor next to her old running shoes. The bus started moving shortly after she was situated, and the breeze from the many open windows started whipping her long black hair across her face and seat. After pulling it back with her fingers behind her ears, she bent over and started rummaging through her backpack. She pulled out a thick novel and started reading, holding the pages tightly so they wouldn't be blown around by the wind.

She didn't move from this position past several stops, a fistfight from the students that resulted in a nosebleed, and a paper airplane hitting her head. She merely continued to read, her flame-blue eyes devouring pages quicker than most people could. Even when a black haired lady several years older than her who was so tall she had to tilt her head sideways to fit under the narrow roof asked if the seat next to her was open, all the first girl did was nod briefly. She didn't even bother to look at who had sat down next to her.

The bus traveled along nicely, without stopping for much traffic as rush hour was still two hours away. Soon, it was away from the thickest part of the city and was traveling towards the more scenic outskirts. The weather was beautiful, with the sun shining warmly but not hotly and just the right number of wispy clouds in the sky. Even with the yelling from the young kids, the rest of the passengers couldn't help but feel more relaxed as they drove under the shadow of a thin row of trees.

Two people, however, did not notice. Not only was the black haired girl wrapped up in her book, imagining what a paper doll house full of nightmares in the land of ice and shadow would be like, but her travel companion had also pulled a book out from under her arm and started reading. The book was old with yellow pages. The cover was so faded it was nearly impossible to read the title. Nonetheless, she was completely captivated by the story within its pages.

The bus stopped at the second to last station on its route and two men entered. Despite the balmy weather, both were wearing long tan trench coats and short black stocking hats. Each man was burdened with a large hockey bag. They started down the aisle slowly, making their way to the back of the bus. After glancing at their progress in the rearview mirror, the bus driver pulled away from the curb for the longest stretch of his route.

At this moment, both men turned so they were leaning back to back with each other. They both pulled out an identical gun and pointed it forward.

"Everyone stay in your seats!" barked one, instantly drawing attention to himself and his partner. Cries of alarm rose from the adult passengers, while the kids looked mildly confused, like this was all a joke.

"We're taking over this bus!" ordered the second. "No one move if you know what's good for you! Now kick all your cell phones this way!"

"Teacher…?" started one young boy.

"Hush!" exclaimed the teacher, fearful, with wide eyes.

"Keep driving," growled the first at the bus driver. He had taken his foot off of the gas in shock.

"Do you all have cotton in your ears!" demanded the second when he got no reaction but surprise from the passengers. "All cell phones this way! Stay in your seats and don't say a word unless you want a hole in your head!"

His tone was so vicious and dark that the passengers slowly complied and tossed their cell phones down the aisle. A couple of little girls started crying softly and hugged each other in their seats, and the first hijacker gave them a nasty glare. The second gathered up the cell phones and threw them in an empty pocket of his hockey bag.

"We don't want any trouble!" continued the second. "Just stay and your seats and shut-up and no one will get hurt!"

"You two!" shouted the first, noticing the two women who were still reading. They were both so wrapped up in their books that they didn't even notice that the bus had been hijacked. They merely continued to sit, flipping through pages at an alarming rate. Even being addressed by the first hijacker didn't snap them out of their written world.

"I'm talking to you!" he demanded, sticking his gun over the top of the book of the taller lady.

"Hmm?" she looked up for a moment before her golden brown eyes went wide as she stared down the barrel of the gun.

"Oh…my…" murmured the reader closest to the window, finally pulling away from her book. Her blue eyes were wide, but more wary than fearful.

"Cell phones!" he ordered. Both women slowly shook their heads. He glared at them, before leaving.

"W-what do you want from us?" asked a shaky voice from near the back.

The first hijacker turned and glowered for a long moment before responding. "We want our boss busted out. And you all are going to be our bartering chip!"

"Have you no decency!" exclaimed a man in the middle. He gestured across the aisle. "This bus is full of kids! Just let them go or…"

SLAP! The second hijacker had walked over to him and struck him across the face, once more thoroughly silencing the vehicle.

The first reader didn't notice this; for the first time she noticed who was sitting next to her. She seemed quite surprised and kept checking over the figure, reconfirming the identity for herself. The woman seated next to her noticed this observation and turned, giving her travel companion a questioning look. The first quickly turned to the window, slightly embarrassed. Meanwhile, both hijackers walked to the front of the bus and were making threats and giving directions to the driver.

One little boy, who didn't full realize the dangers, pulled out a small Matchbox car and was racing it along the back of the seat, doing flips and wheelies to get a giggle out of the friend sitting beside him. The bus turned a corner sharply and the car jumped out of his small hands and hit the floor, rolling away from him. He instantly got out of his seat on his hands and knees to retrieve the toy.

"Hey!" shouted the second hijacker, turning around a second later and grabbing the kid off of the floor. "Stay seated!" He roughly shoved the boy back into his seat.

"You bully!" shot the friend. The hijacker looked like he was going to hit one of them for a moment.

"_How did he know the boy had moved?"_ the reader by the window briefly wondered. Her blue eyes slid over to the tall lady and she spoke lowly through gritted teeth. "You're Maggie Mui, aren't you?"

Maggie turned her head sharply, surprised. She looked at the teen with long black hair, but she was staring forward, trying not to attract attention to the hijackers. But Maggie could tell she was being watched from the corner of the girl's eyes. Maggie nodded slowly, once, even though she was puzzled by how this stranger knew her name.

"How did you…?" Maggie started to ask in a low, nearly expressionless tone, but the other lady cut her off.

"I have a plan to save us," she continued. "Trust me. I can take out both of those guys by ambushing them from directly over the seats. I just need you to back me up. Can you?"

Maggie looked at her, thinking for a moment. _"Does she know I'm a paper master? If she does, how, and how does she know my name? What is she planning?" _She looked forward to the hijackers again, her eyes lingering on the guns for a moment, before she replied again with a nod.

"Watch for my movement."

"Do you want to be the first to die!" Both girls jumped as the first hijacker threatened a man by the front of the bus. He had bent over to examine the hockey bags, which had been abandoned in the aisle. The man paled as the gun was shoved in his face. He sunk back into his seat with a dry gulp. The hijacker then pulled out his own cell phone and called the police, making their demands in a voice so low it was hard to hear over the buzz of the wind through all the windows.

"Turn here," the second ordered the bus driver, selecting a narrow road. The sign by the corner of the road said that it ran past a game preserve.

"We're here!" sang a little girl as she eagerly peered out the window.

"_A field trip?"_ wondered Maggie, noticing how the kids were getting excited despite the situation. She glanced to the lady next to her, but she did not acknowledge anything.

The bus continued down the road with the only noise coming from the wind and the elementary kids. They did not pass another car even once. One time, the cell phone of one of the hijackers rang, and he answered it, making more demands from the police. The first lady watched them closely while trying to look like she wasn't. She kept looking for an opening, when they were close to each other and when she could get to them over the seats without clobbering a bystander, but that opportunity simply wasn't presenting itself.

Maggie was lost in her own thoughts. _"Who is she and how does she know me? What are the hijackers' true objectives? And how do they keep knowing what we're doing even though they have their backs to the passengers?"_

The road had gotten even narrower and a lush wetland was pushing in on either side. Water dependant trees only barely blocked the view of nearly half a mile of marshy land. The smell of semi-stagnant water and thick plants in full pollen now wafted in. The passengers could see small turtles sunning themselves on fallen, barkless logs and muskrats sticking their noses out of the darkened waters.

"Look! A crane!" exclaimed a girl, pressing her face against the window.

"No! It's a stork!" said a boy in the seat behind her.

"Look! There's a lot of them!"

"It's a flock!"

"They're cranes!"

"No, they're storks!"

"Cranes!"

"Storks!"

In a matter of a few seconds, all of the children were clustered around the windows, peering out with enthusiastic expressions. The wetland had opened up, a dozens of white cranes were standing in the water, some fishing, some preening, some resting, some simply standing. Small dark ducks paddling between them, occasionally diving so only their tail feathers showed.

"Back in your seats! Back in your seats!" shouted the second hijacker futilely.

"Aw, let them," grumbled the first, sounding frustrated from having to deal with so many little kids.

"Excuse me," the blue-eyed teen said, slipping past Maggie and standing in the aisle.

A small boy was trying to push his way to the window to see what all of his peers were so excited about, but he simply could not get through. She picked him up and placed him on her left knee, after setting it along the edge of a spare seat.

"Can you see now?" she asked.

"A little higher, please," he asked, smiling brightly as he craned his head around to see the birds. She complied.

WHAM! She accidentally hit his head on the low ceiling.

"I'm so sorry!" she gasped. She looked genuinely remorseful and aghast.

The boy shook his head, shaking of the pain and showing he wasn't hit that hard. His attention was already on the wetlands outside. He leaned forward a bit, bringing the storks into view. The teen held him tightly across the chest to keep him balanced, but her mind had already wandered elsewhere.

"_The ceiling is too low. I could never slip over the seats fast enough to take out those two men. But what else can I do, I can't stand by and do nothing,"_ she thought. She scanned the bus in her peripheral vision, examining all her options. She could feel Maggie watching her without looking at her, waiting for the promised cue.

The bus ambled on and the kids slowly returned to their seats (or at least sat down) when the flock of cranes disappeared in the distance. She set the boy she was supporting down and returned to her seat, taking the aisle side now as Maggie scooted toward the window. The second hijacker walked down the middle, scanning both sides of passengers, checking to see if they were going to attempt anything. The passengers as a whole tried not to make eye contact. Many were looking paler, some were sweating, some were leaking tears. Others glared the moment his back was turned. The only ones who seemed relaxed were the students.

"Turn ahead," the first ordered the driver, placing the gun above the nape of his neck.

By looking through the front windshield, both women could see that the road they were about to be forced down was an overgrown gravel road that disappeared into thickening woods. The hair on their necks bristled.

"_If we end up down there, we're not going to come out,"_ thought the younger. Her eyes flickered to Maggie, who was leaning forward slightly out of tension. _"We have to do something and it has to be** now**."_

7


	2. The Hijack Part 2

Gema's Personal Disclaimer: I'm putting this in front of every chapter I write, so no one can miss it.

First, the obvious, I don't own anything trademarked or copyrighted.

Second; These are my fics, so y'all will have to deal with my writing quirks. Do not bother telling me about my spelling choices, like Yu-Gi, Joe, Millennial, or whatever else they may be. These are not mistakes, they are intentional. Therefore, I don't want to hear about how they are other wise spelled. If spelling bothers you that much, then leave.

I, and everyone else, do not appreciate personal attacks. My fics are what are open to being critized, not my character. Attacking me is libel, and I will report it as harassment.

I will not include profanity in my writings. Deal with it. Also, I do not appreciate profanity in reviews, so please don't include it. There's over 600,000 words in the English language. I am sure y'all can use something besides profanity.

Some review etiquette should be observed. As says at the bottom of each review page "It is extremely helpful to use this opportunity to comment on an aspect of the story that can be improved. A well rounded critique is often the most rewarding tool for the writer." I would appreciate constructive reviews. "Please continue" is not very helpful. Reviews that are solely demands for updates or explanations about a lack of updates are not helpful. And please, use recognizable grammar when reviewing. A review isn't very helpful if I can't read it.

Please check my bio from time to time. If I am on vacation or something and cannot update, that will be in the first few lines of my bio. I'll try to let y'all know if there's an update delay, so please check.

Feel free to contact me either through IM or e-mail, that information is in my bio as well.

Now, most of you aren't the problem, but this is for the few that are. This might come across as crabby, and I'm not really like this, but I've been pushed to my limit because of certain reviews.

x-x-x-x-x-x

The teen's blue eyes slid to her left, to Maggie Mui who was sitting beside her, leaning slightly forward as if she was about to stand. Both were tall enough (although Maggie was more so) to see over and around the seats of the charter bus out of the large windshield. Their weight shifted towards the aisle as the bus began a sharp turn onto an overgrown road by order of the hijackers. They both tensed, knowing that if they disappeared into those leaves they might never come out again.

In fact, most of the adults on that bus tensed up, realizing the exact same thing. The only ones who remained calm were the young students on the right hand side, who were all intent on observing the wetlands as the last part of an apparent field trip. One girl with a ponytail was even asking her teacher why she was crying.

"Stop talking! All of you!" bellowed one hijacker as he walked down the aisle, pointing his gun in the face of anyone who did more than twitch. The kids looked up at him with big eyes, the threat barely registering.

That was the moment Maggie met her eyes. Although it was such a little gesture, it was the exact cue the teen was looking for. She didn't take a deep breath to calm her nerves; she didn't even waste that much time. As the hijacker walked passed her, her right arm shot out in a straight punch and landed a crippling blow right into his solar plexus.

The hijacker gasped out in pain as he crumpled over, clutching his stomach. She was on her feet within a second and swept her right arm in a circular motion, chopping his back as if it was a karate block. He went down like a dropped watermelon and groaned, but didn't move.

BANG! BANG! At the front of the bus two gunshots fired, causing all of the passengers to take cover behind their seats. The girl's black rippled from the force of the air. Someone screamed.

Maggie had reacted the exact same moment as the gunman. From out of a hidden pocket she pulled a stack of notecards. They came to life in her hands, linking together at their corners and extending like a whip. The bullets stopped and scrunched flat the moment they hit her whip, which continued like a snake, wrapping completely around his gun. With a definite jerk, she yanked the weapon out of his hands and sent it through a window, glass fragments showering the people crouched below it.

The hijacker didn't even have a moment to react in surprise. After seeing Maggie using her paper powers, the other lady leapt forward, springing on the corners of the seats to avoid tripping over the suspicious hockey bags that the hijackers had placed across the aisle. She spun on the second to front seat, landing a high kick to the man's head and busting his lip in the process. He slammed into the windshield but fortunately didn't crack it. He managed to get his feet under him as he slid to the ground, cursing under his breath.

He stumbled around as if he was floundering for a way to fight back. She didn't give him a chance. Trying to move freely despite the narrow quarters, she drove her elbow into his stomach, forcing the wind out of his lungs. She then immediately swung her fist up to his face, using her elbow as a pivot. It smashed his nose and he slid to the ground in a heap.

BANG! BANG! BANG! Her eyes went wide as the whole world spun.

Once the driver realized he was no longer under gunpoint, he jerked the wheel away from the off-road path that he had been directed and hit the brakes. In his anxiety, he hit the breaks too hard, slamming them to a stop and throwing everyone forward through inertia.

During the same time a pudgy guy from the back of the bus had leapt to his feet and pulled out a third gun. While she had been busy fighting the second hijacker, he had aimed and fired three rounds directly at her.

Fortunately, Maggie seemed to have been anticipating this. In an instant she transformed her paper whip in a blanketing shield, cutting off the back of the bus from the front. She not only protected her still unnamed partner, but also the students and other innocent bystanders from his careless attack.

The third hijacker continued to fire wildly, but once more her paper sprang to life. All of the notecards shifted together, forming what appeared to be a small swarm of bats. They encircled the man, diving in, clinging to his limbs and weighing them down, blinding him and preventing him from firing his gun. He bellowed in frustration and fell forward, tightly bound by paper.

During the same moments this was all going on, the first hijacker was sent flying face forward from the momentum of the bus stopping. With an audible crack his head collided with one of the hockey bags and he blacked out, blood beginning to trickle down his forehead.

There was even more commotion and yelling as people were tossed into the backs of the seats in front of them, trying to hang out, just screaming from the fear and chaos, noises from bags sliding across the floor, and the loud screech of the brakes. A person in the front seat scrambled for a cell phone and tried to dial 9-1-1 with a shaking hand.

The teen by the front of the bus picked herself up, rubbing the back of her head which had hit the hand railing when she had slid forward. She brushed herself off and looked down the aisle at Maggie. Maggie's brown eyes suddenly went wide and she spun, gaping at the hockey bags. The teen looked at her bewildered, then she too heard the ticking.

"They're bombs?!" she gaped in horror. Her mind raced, thinking of something that she could do. But her martial art training taught her nothing on dealing with explosives.

Her exclamation didn't help the situation or the other passengers more. It only alarmed them. A few even stood, preparing to flee. If they did, it would be impossible to deal with the bombs since they were right in the aisle.

Once more, Maggie was the one who saved them. She snatched the precious book she was reading off of the floor, where it had fallen in the confusion. Within her hands it broke into the separate pages that it was composed of. Paper walls extended from both of her hands, blocking people in their seats and keeping them away from the bombs. Paper shot through the air with purpose, coating both bags in a cocoon. More and more pages fell into place, laying the bags in a thick, protective coat.

Everyone heard the bombs the moment they detonated inside of the cocoon. Moments later the bus was filled with whimpering and the smell of burning paper as the layers peeled away and floated to the ground freely, turning into ashes. Maggie quickly smothered the ignited pieces with her own power, looking mournfully at what was left of her book.

The passengers looked at both women in shock and alarm. Maggie knew that when, and soon, the shock of the danger would leave them all and the questions would begin. She grabbed the black-haired teen's backpack and book off of the floor and calmly walked to the front of the bus and handed them to her. Without waiting for her or asking anything, Maggie opened the bus door since the driver was like the passengers, too shocked to move. She stepped out and away from the bus before anyone budge, the entire time watched with large eyes.

It was the teen who moved first. She looked at the backpack in her hands, then everything came flooding back. She threw the strap over one shoulder and raced off the bus, leaping right over the steps. The breeze from the wetlands cooled her sweat as she looked left and right, instantly spotting Maggie's tall form.

"Excuse me!" she called, racing over, not stopping to catch her breath, calm her nerves, or control her heart rate. "Maggie Mui! Ms. Mui! Please! Excuse me!"

The paper master stopped and turned as she caught up. She appeared slight uncomfortable by a confrontation, possibly from the questions she was expecting and possibly from her introverted nature.

"Yes?" she replied, simply.

Much to her surprise, the girl dropped to her knees and bowed forward, her palms placed a foot away on either side of her head, her torso paralleled with the pavement. "My name is Saphira Twyla. Please, I beg you Ms. Mui. Teach me...teach me to become a paper master. I beg you!"

Maggie opened her mouth to reply, it hung open in surprise for a moment, then she closed it again. She started at the teen, who hadn't moved from her bowing position, silently pleading by her stillness. No thoughts would surface on how to handle a situation like this and she wished her sisters Michelle and Anita were there to help.

In the silence, they both heard the faint but quickly approaching sound of sirens. Saphira didn't move, still intent on waiting for a response in her prostrate position. Maggie let out a small exhale.

"Come on," she told the teen. "A paper master always avoids answering the awkward questions that police have."

Without waiting to see if she would stand, she turned and quickly started walking away, her long legs carrying her fast. Saphira stood, her eyes lighting up with happiness and relief and she raced after the paper master.


End file.
